In its second year of operation, the Bustang inter-regional bus service connecting Denver to Fort Collins, Colorado Springs and Glenwood Springs saw ridership jump by 52 percent over its inaugural year, according to a report from the Colorado Department of Transportation.

Bustang covers three main routes: the South Route provides service between Denver Union Station and Colorado Springs (up 42 percent); the North Route runs buses between Union Station and Fort Collins (up 50 percent); and the West Route services Idaho Springs, Frisco, Vail, Eagle and Glenwood Springs from Union Station (up 77 percent).

CDOT has plans to expand Bustang in the coming year, with new stops and additional buses on existing routes during the work week. It will add weekend service starting Sunday, with two round trips per day on Saturdays and Sundays on both its north and south routes. Round-trip weekend service already exists on Bustang’s west route into the mountains.

It cost about $10 million to start Bustang and about $3 million annually to run, CDOT said. The service brought in more than $1.5 million in revenue in the last fiscal year.

Originally from Boston, John Aguilar covers Denver's suburbs for The Denver Post, where he has worked since April 2014. He has also worked at the Boulder County Business Report, the Rocky Mountain News and the Boulder Daily Camera.